Assyrian merchants were structuring risk capital deals, writing term sheets, and pooling investor funds millennia before Sand Hill Road existed. The psychology of who gets funded hasn't changed since 2000 BC.
Mar 16, 2026
Roman generals discovered that controlling their soldiers' retirement packages was more powerful than controlling their paychecks. When the Senate stopped delivering on veteran benefits, ambitious leaders stepped in to fill the gap—creating the template for every corporate loyalty program and workplace cult of personality that followed.
Mar 16, 2026
From the crumbling edges of the Roman Empire to the modern gig worker refreshing their DoorDash app, the story is the same: institutions that replace real pay with promises eventually get exactly what they paid for. The psychological contract between employer and worker is ancient, and breaking it has always had consequences.
Mar 13, 2026